Joy is the story of the title character, who rose to become founder and matriarch of a powerful family business dynasty.
David O Russell’s movie about the hard-scrub single mum who became queen of QVC after inventing a self-wringing mop is a dreamlike curio whose flights of surreal fancy curb the director’s trademark zaniness.
Another dazzling Jennifer Lawrence performance anchors a blue-collar parable that boasts some inspired moments but never quite gels.
Alongside the clowning, the film offers us a rousing story of a self-made woman who overcomes every setback in her bid to launch her own business.
Writer/ director David O Russell lays it on pretty thick with Joy's quirky, suffocating family but Lawrence creates the kind of plucky underdog you are only too happy to cheer and Joy is a feelgood way to start the year.
Not without glitches but an energetic study of one woman’s refusal to settle for anything less than her share of the American Dream.
The life story of miracle mop inventor Joy Mangano has plenty of style but doesn’t quite wash.
Jennifer Lawrence gives it some gusto in David O Russell’s tonally uncertain dramedy.
Lawrence saves the day and the film's seasonally appropriate ending ensures the title is justified in more ways than one.
General release. Check local listings for show times.